The Difference Between a Scientist and an Engineer

I once heard this story during a lecture of a great agricultural engineer who obviously was my idol way back in college. Here it goes:

During a convention, an engineer and a scientist, who actually was a mathematician, were a having a small talk along the corridor. They then a noticed a beautiful lady on the opposite side of the corridor. Being the typical gentlemen that most engineers are, the engineer asked the scientist: "If you are standing exactly 2 meters away from that lady, how many steps do you need to take in order for your lips to touch the lips of that lady on the condition that every step you take is exactly one-half the distance of the step that you have previously made?"

The scientists took a few a seconds thinking and then answered: "Impossible! That is ASSYMPTOTIC, on that condition, you can only get nearer and nearer to that lady but you can never touch her!"

The engineer, who was actually an agricultural engineer, grinned and said: "Oh! Three steps! All I need is three steps and the EXPANSION DUE TO HEAT BUILD UP will cover the remaining distance."